The present invention relates to an atomizer and, more particularly, to a liquid atomizer of manual type for atomizing a liquid such as perfume, cosmetic preparations or the like.
The conventional liquid atomizer incorporates a first cylinder downwardly suspended from the center of a cap located on the neck portion of a container, a second cylinder of larger diameter than that of the first cylinder coaxially disposed with the first cylinder within a head or an actuator elevationally movably disposed at the upper portion of the cap, one tubular slide disposed between the first and the second cylinders and including a lower piston telescopically inserted into the first cylinder and an upper piston telescopically inserted into the second cylinder, a valve formed at the top of the slide, and a coil spring so mounted as to maintain the valve at a position for shutting off the communication between the first cylinder and a spraying nozzle.
When the actuator of the atomizer thus construced is depressed down to slide the tubular slide, it pressurizes the liquids contained within both the first and the second cylinders to thereby permit the second piston to be liable to relatively move with respect to the first piston against the tension of the coil spring acting on the second piston. When the liquid pressure sufficiently balances with the tension of the coil spring, the second piston telescopically moves to thereby open the valve connected thereto. Thus, the interiors of both the first and the second cylinders communicate with the nozzle to thereby spray the liquid through the nozzle. Accordingly, the liquid is not sprayed from the nozzle until the liquid pressure reaches a predetermined value within both the first and the second cylinders to thereby avoid the dropping of liquid droplets without atomization from the nozzle. This dropping phenomenon of liquid droplets occurs when both the first and the second cylinders communicate with the nozzle from the beginning upon telescopic movements of the first piston. This dropping phenomenon also takes place similarly upon completion of the telescopic movement of the first piston in the first cylinder. When the liquid pressure has a weaker strength than the returning strength or tension of the coil spring of the second piston into the second cylinder, to the second piston, the valve is closed by the coil spring to thereby shut off the communication between both the first and the second cylinders and the valve.
The conventional atomizer of this type has such a disadvantage that, since the liquid pressure is increased higher as the tubular slide or hollow piston is depressed at longer stroke, it is difficult to initially spray the high pressure liquid. This atomizer also has another disadvantage that, when the piston is telescopically moved to its extending limit in the cylinder in order to exactly introduce the liquid into a pressure chamber by slight priming operation by the initial depression of the tubular alide, the air contained within the pressure chamber is exhausted not only into the liquid container but into the atmosphere to thereby induce the dropping of liquid droplets through the nozzle.
On the other hand, the conventional atomizer can suffer blockage of its nozzle hole, which is smaller in diameter than the gap passage of liquid, when solid insolubles are mixed within the liquid. This thereby causes damage to the atomizer.